Eddie Allen

Eddie Allen’s story? Wild mix of grit, luck, and a dash of destiny if you ask me. Born in Baltimore, schooled at Towson, he grew up with drama basically stitched into his DNA. Blame his mom, honestly—she ran from Baghdad chasing big acting dreams, and didn’t let him forget it for a second. “Act, play, and enjoy life!” she’d say—can you imagine that on repeat at breakfast? His dad, Paul (or Panos, depending who’s asking), survived the Armenian genocide, fought with the Brits in WWI, and somehow, all that history just sort of hums under Eddie’s skin. In his twenties, Eddie zigzagged across the country with a Commedia Dell’Arte troupe and, get this, a one-man mime show. Can’t make that up. But eventually, watching his college buddies pop up on screen while he was still living out of suitcases, he bailed on the touring grind and set up shop in NYC. Didn’t last—by ‘83 he’d landed in LA, met Anamyn Turowski, and they started a family, two sons, Ian and Oliver. Fast forward to 2007: the Allens ditch LA for upstate New York. Apparently, Eddie’s a sucker for real seasons and a quieter life. That country calm got him writing, big time. By 2011, he’d co-written and performed “Finding Fathers” with Rob Leo Roy, his partner in crime. Now? He’s got his head down on a new play—brothers, life, all the messy, beautiful stuff. If there’s a thread running through his life, it’s chasing stories, in whatever form they show up.